The high court denial means that accused insurance fraud defendant Claire Risoldi must serve her jail sentence for a contempt of court judgement.

Jo Ciavaglia @JoCiavaglia

A politically connected Bucks County woman awaiting trial in a $20 million insurance fraud scheme will serve 30 days in county jail after the state’s highest court rejected her request for an appeal of a contempt judgement.

In Wednesday's one sentence decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied the request to hear the appeal for Claire Risoldi, 70, of Buckingham, who was found in contempt for violating a court order barring her from contacting prosecution witnesses in the insurance fraud case where she is a defendant. The justices did not provide a reason for the denial.

There is no date set for when Risoldi must report to Bucks County prison. The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting Risoldi and her co-defendants, must first file a motion with the court to set a date.

This news organization was not immediately successful in reaching attorney Jack McMahon, who is representing Risoldi in the fraud case, for comment Thursday.

The Pennsylvania Superior Court in July issued a decision that found the lower court did not abuse its discretion in finding Risoldi was in “indirect or direct contempt of court” for using the subpoena process to skirt a no-contact order with witnesses in the fraud case. Chester County Senior Judge Thomas Gavin found Risoldi in contempt in 2016 and ordered her to serve 30 days in jail.

Claire Risoldi, her daughter, Carla Risoldi, 51, of Solebury, son Carl A. Risoldi, 46, and his wife, Sheila Risoldi, 46, both of Buckingham, are accused of fraud and related offenses in connection with alleged false insurance claims filed following an October 2013 fire at the family estate, Clairemont, in Buckingham, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. Through their respective attorneys, the family members consistently have denied any wrongdoing in the state’s fraud case.

Gavin is overseeing the Risoldi fraud case and related matters after all Bucks County judges recused themselves in 2015, when the criminal charges were filed against the family, which has close ties with the county’s Republican Party. Trial dates for Claire Risoldi and the co-defendants, who will be tried separately, is scheduled to take place next year.

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